CONTENTS. Vll 



Page 



Mr. Henry John Porter's Account of the Monts de Piete of Rome, Paris, 

 and other cities on the Continent 91 



. ■ on the Loan Funds in Ireland 93 



Mr. A. Ryland on the Income of Scientific and Literary Societies, and the 

 Amount paid for Rates and Taxes in the year 1840 95 



Mr. James Heywood's Report on the State of Education in the Polytechnic 

 School at Paris, prepared at the request of James Heywood, F.R.S., by an 

 English resident at Paris 96 



Mrs. Davies Gilbert's Results of some Experiments on a System of small 

 Allotments and Spade Husbandry 98 



M. Quetelet's Account of the Establishment of a Central Statistical Commis- 

 sion in Brussels, by the Belgian Government 98 



MECHANICS. 



Mr. Wm. Stuart on the Plymouth Breakwater 99 



Captain Taylor on a Floating Breakwater 100 



Mr. G. Rennie on the Propulsion of Vessels by the Trapezium Paddle-wheel 



and Screw = 101 



Mr. W. Chatfield on Truscott's Plan for Reefing Paddle-wheels 101 



Mr. J. Grantham on a Plan of Disengaging and Reconnecting the Paddle- 

 wheels of Steam-engines 102 



On Captain Couch's Chock Channels .". 102 



Mr. J. M. Rendel on a System of Trussing for the Roadways of Suspension 



Bridges 102 



Mr. J. S. Enys's Remarks on the Connexion which exists between Improve- 

 ments in Pitwork and the Duty of Steam-engines in Cornwall 103 



Mr. Charles Thornton Coathupe on an improved Sight for Rifles and other 



Fire-arms 104 



Mr. W. Johnson on the Granite Quarries of Dartmoor, and their Railways 



and Machinery 105 



Mr. J. N. Hearder on Arnott's Stove, and the Construction of Descending 



Flues, and their Application to the purposes of Ventilation 105 



Mr. John Taylor on the Water Power at Wheal Friendship Mine 106 



Sir IsAMBARD Brunel on the present state of the Thames Tunnel 106 



